Festina Lente Gardens

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Festina Lente is a not-for-profit organisation provides a unique range of equestrian and horticultural activities, training, recreational events and employment services options with a strong emphasis on social inclusion, choice and personal development.

We have a variety of public services and facilities for everyone to enjoy on our campus in Bray – an Equestrian Centre offering lessons, camps and equine assisted programmes, a beautifully restored Victorian Walled Garden where we host lots of fun seasonal family and events, children’s workshops and birthday parties and gardening workshops,  a Garden Centre, an open air snack bar and shop so why not pop along for a visit.  Keep an eye on our Events Calendar for upcoming events!

We are also an education centre offering QQI accredited educational training courses:

• Equestrian Training Programme
• Equine Assisted Learning Facilitator Training Programme
• Therapeutic Riding Coaching Programme
• Transition Training Programme.

All activities encourage individual choice, personal development, achievement and progression and we are a registered Irish Charity.

Our campus is situated in the grounds of what was once Old Connaught House, formerly the residence of the Plunket family. Read more on the History of Old Connaught House & Gardens and Festina Lente Foundation.  Festina Lente (Latin) means Hasten Slowly and is the Plunket family motto. We adopted this as the name of our organisation in 1995 because it conveys our culture perfectly.  Festina Lente was founded in 1988 by Mary Rachel Brophy; her aim was through social and economic inclusion, to support those most at risk.  The result of all of the Festina Lente’s hard work is the wonderful garden and state of the art Equestrian Centre which are available to the public to enjoy whenever they want.